MIT's Jimmy Bartolotta Named ESPN the Magazine Academic All-America

Feb 29, 2008

Feb. 29, 2008

NOTRE DAME, Ind. - Junior guard Jimmy Bartolotta has been named to the 2008 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America First Team in men's basketball, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Two days after being selected as a finalist for the prestigious Jostens Trophy, MIT's junior star earned additional plaudits after closing out a dazzling campaign in his third year.

Bartolotta was the only junior selected to the college division first team. A native of Littleton, Colo., Bartolotta maintains a converted 3.79 grade-point average while majoring in Management Science and Physics. Bartolotta averaged an Institute-record 23.9 points per game this season while moving into fourth place on the MIT all-time scoring list with 1,479. He finished the year as the NEWMAC scoring champion for the second consecutive season and was ranked among the conference leaders in every statistical category.

In addition to Bartolotta, Troy Ruths (Washington University), Eric Bieniasz (St. Norbert College), Steve Dagastino (College of Saint Rose), and Chris Pendleton (Southern Virginia University) were named to the first team. Ruths, who holds a 4.0 GPA in Computer Science while ranking second all-time in scoring for the Bears, was named Academic All-American of the Year for the second straight year.

The New England region earned two other selections as Andrew Harris of Middlebury and Ben Chase of Emerson were named to the second team.

To be eligible, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and nominated by his/her sports information director.

Since the program's inception in 1952, MIT has totaled the fourth-highest membership across all NCAA divisions and is the all-time Division III leader with 139 honors. Bartolotta's nod marks MIT's fifth selection this year.

Senior Alex Bagley also earned high praise through the CoSIDA/Academic All-America program after being selected second team all-district. Bagley is set to graduate with a degree in Chemical and Biological Engineering and a perfect 4.0 GPA.